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墨書 Inktalez
As Ye Chenfeng descended the mountain after handling everything, the weather turned unkind, and a fine drizzle began to fall.
The misty rain drifted through the gray, desolate world, resembling a veil of fog. It dampened the leaves, soaked the ground, and even wet their hair.
If they were not in this cursed place, in Purple City, they would have burst into laughter at the tiny pearls of water dotting their heads.
However, given the current situation, having just left Zhanglin Village, their moods were heavy. Especially after witnessing the tragic fate of Sun Hong and hearing Sister Guai recount how Sun Hong and the others had been viciously attacked by the Drunken Nose Village Chief's dog while trying to escape Zhanglin Village, only to be further pecked at by a flock of Cold Crows until they became nothing but bones. The weight of it all left them speechless as they hurriedly got into the vehicle without pausing for a moment in that dreadful place.
Sister Guai informed Ye Chenfeng that they were now at the infamous Cold Crow Ridge. She wondered where all those Cold Crows had gone today; in days past, the branches would be dark with their presence. It was these Cold Crows that made it nearly impossible for anyone from Zhanglin Village to pass through Cold Crow Ridge successfully.
The villagers were even more reluctant to venture out.
Hearing Sister Guai's words, Ye Chenfeng felt a sense of relief. Thankfully, he had settled the remaining villagers in a safe place. If they had not stayed put in the village, they would inevitably encounter those carnivorous Cold Crows upon venturing out.
Once inside the vehicle, Ye Chenfeng glanced over and smiled faintly. His Ding Li seemed to pick up on some unspoken cue and took care of Xiang'er with a nurturing instinct.
Sister Guai cherished Xiang'er and contemplated taking her back to her family.
Ye Chenfeng did not immediately agree to Sister Guai's request; he felt a responsibility and obligation to keep Xiang'er close.
Qin Keqing and the others were puzzled by Ye Chenfeng's actions.
"Buddy, remember you're still a student; don't forget you're part of the outreach team," Shen Binghan kindly reminded him.
Xiang'er snuggled close to Ding Li, understanding that her older brothers were discussing her future. She quietly asked Ding Li, "Sister, will you all not want me anymore?"
"Of course we want you; you'll be my little sister," Ding Li replied genuinely. She truly liked Xiang'er, especially since she was alone now; having a sister by her side was wonderful. She hoped Ye Chenfeng would keep Xiang'er around and preferred to take care of her personally.
When the car arrived, it was already crowded with a few people, and now three more had joined.
Sister Guai, Xiang'er, and Ding Li were all crammed inside, making it particularly tight. Even the slightest movement was nearly impossible. This was in the rural countryside; if they were in a big city or a tech area, electronic eyes would have recorded their violations, and fines would be the least of their worries—there was a chance they could even lose their licenses.
With so many people, the car felt like it was bursting at the seams, much like dough rising. Bodies pressed against each other, heads touching, legs brushing.
It was quite cold outside, yet someone inside was sweating.
"Damn it, it's so hot..."
"We're almost there. Once we pass through that long tunnel, we'll be on the main road," Qin Keqing reassured Su Bei, who was complaining about the heat.
Su Bei noticed Ding Li and Xiang'er whispering to each other and scoffed, "Why do women love to whisper so much? What do you think they're talking about?"
"Could it be about their periods?" Shen Binghan joked with a smirk, covering his mouth.
The driver, Ye Chenfeng, shot him an annoyed glance and muttered, "Xiang'er is still just a girl."
"Hey... I have a feeling that when Xiang'er grows up, she'll be a real beauty. If I don't find a wife in the future, Ye Chenfeng, you should let me marry Xiang'er."
Ye Chenfeng shook his head with a smile while focusing intently on driving.
Qin Keqing flicked a rubber band at Su Bei's head and said, "By then you'll be an old man while Xiang'er will still be a young lady."
"I’m telling you all—you're all Sun Xianger's brothers and her guardians. No joking around with your own sister," Ye Chenfeng warned as he continued to drive without looking away. "Why is it getting foggy?"
Indeed, it was getting foggy.
The road ahead vanished into the thick fog, which seemed to conceal something terrifying within its depths.
Even more astonishing was the clanging sound emanating from the mist, reminiscent of people working on a road, the sounds of shovels and picks striking the ground. Suddenly, figures began to emerge from the fog, their forms light and transparent, yet they gave off a palpable sense of presence.
Among them were both men and women, each wielding various roadwork tools.
"Goodness, why are there so many people here working on the road? Is there something wrong with it up ahead?" Qin Keqing exclaimed, calling for Ye Chenfeng to stop the car so he could take a look.
Ye Chenfeng frowned deeply, banging his hands on the steering wheel as he muttered, "This is strange; the car just stalled on its own."
"How is that possible!" Qin Keqing said, twisting the key in vain.
The car was acting bizarrely, inexplicably stalling without reason.
The fog grew thicker, and more figures began to appear from within it.
Ding Li and Xiang'er dared not make a sound.
Ye Chenfeng and his companions exchanged bewildered glances, unsure of what was happening.
Sister Guai stared at the figures passing by the car window, nervously swallowing. One person seemed to sense something; he suddenly stopped and turned to look at the car window—
In an instant, Ye Chenfeng gestured for Sister Guai to crouch down and urged everyone else to do the same.
Qin Keqing quickly forced himself into a position where he couldn't be seen through the car glass.
Outside, voices buzzed like a large meeting. The clanging sounds continued unabated, and as Ye Chenfeng listened to them, he couldn't help but think of the little river behind Grandma's House.
Every summer, the flood season arrives. The small river behind Grandma's house begins to swell, and in the months leading up to this season, preparations must be made to repair the dam, guarding against the fierce floods that could breach it and inundate the fertile fields.
Thus, repairing the dam is a significant task.
Ye Chenfeng heard from Grandma that in recent years, this river has rarely overflowed.
In the 1970s, the water surged as if a great dragon was rolling within it, sweeping over the dam and potentially flooding fields or even causing casualties. Therefore, before the flood season arrived, a major dam repair project was necessary.
Then, just a few miles from Grandma's house, many people would come.
They came to repair the dam, to earn work points to support their families, and they would enjoy a hearty meal of rice and stir-fried pork.
Ye Chenfeng also heard Grandma say that during those times when the family was very poor, the workers repairing the dam ate rice while those living closer to the river had crispy rice to eat.
Now, that sound resembled a large group of workers repairing the dam.
But there was no river here; how could anyone be repairing a dam?
Qin Keqing squatted down and quietly asked Ye Chenfeng, "What's going on here?"
Ye Chenfeng glanced at Sister Guai, who was trembling in fear, and whispered, "Don't make a sound; perhaps Sister Guai can explain what's happening."
They crouched in the car for a long time, waiting until there was no more noise or movement outside before they stood up to take a look.
The fog outside had dissipated, revealing a somewhat intact but uneven farm road stretching far into the distance.
"Where did everyone go? There were so many people just now; how could they all vanish at once?" Qin Keqing exclaimed in astonishment.
Not only that, everyone was astonished.
Only Ye Chenfeng knew the truth.
He said to Qin Keqing, "You drive the car, and I'll chat with Sister Guai."
"At a time like this, you still want to chat?" Qin Keqing couldn't understand his seemingly nonsensical behavior, but she still got out and sat in the driver's seat.
Ye Chenfeng let Su Bei sit in the front with Qin Keqing while he sat next to Sister Guai.
Sister Guai was in tears, her pale lips trembling as she shook her head and sighed, "What a sin..."
"Sister Guai, were those 'people' outside really repairing the road just now?"
"Yes! Many of them were from Zhanglin Village. They braved the rain to fix this stretch of road. No one expected the landslide would happen, causing so many deaths."
"They... are dead?" Su Bei was immediately frightened, afraid to see the scene from earlier again, even daring not to look straight ahead.
"They're dead; they have been for a long time. I wasn't even here back then. Zhanglin Village is very remote with no way out. Their ancestors vowed to build a road leading outside, but unexpectedly, a landslide buried all those who were repairing it... Later on, when the country was liberated, this road was finally rebuilt."
"So many people died? Their bones are underground!"
"Yes, today is overcast; the energy here is heavy, so their souls have appeared to repair the road," Ye Chenfeng explained. He then added, "Drive the car forward; I'll perform a ritual for them and let them know about the current situation so they can rest easy and move on."
"Can you really help them?"
"I can."
Qin Keqing smiled at Sister Guai and said, "You can rest assured about this; Ye Chenfeng may not have many skills, but he is quite adept at dealing with ghosts."
"Oh," Sister Guai nodded in agreement, not saying anything further.
"Do you need my help, Ye Chenfeng?" Ding Li asked as he noticed Xiang'er sleeping soundly. He quickly draped a coat over her and leaned forward to inquire of Ye Chenfeng.
"It's fine, you all stay in the car. I can handle this myself."
The vehicle started with an odd noise and glided to the spot designated by Ye Chenfeng. He got out wearing a Daoist robe, holding a Ghost-Collecting Gourd, a vermilion brush, some talismans, and a large stack of Hell Money. After stepping out, he walked backward for several meters before stopping, sitting cross-legged on the ground, forming hand seals and chanting softly.
He then took out a book that most people wouldn't understand, titled The Ghost-Quaking Scripture, and began to mumble its contents.
While others couldn't see them, Ye Chenfeng could make out shadowy figures emerging from the ground, the roadside, and the grass. They were equipped with tools for road work and pickaxes for breaking stones, all converging toward his location.
Qin Keqing was very eager to get out of the car. If it weren't for Ye Chenfeng's prior warning to refrain from acting rashly, she would have definitely stepped out to see what was happening.
A sense of dread was not good.
For Ye Chenfeng, this was deadly serious. The souls he was trying to guide could easily turn into Evil Spirits if startled by external disturbances while they were still in a state of uncertainty.
The ethereal figures floated around him, their voices echoing in his ears.
Ye Chenfeng merely closed his eyes and continued reciting the sutras for guiding spirits, completely ignoring the people and things around him.
A cold hand brushed against his face, and a chilling voice asked, "Young man, what are you doing here? What era is it now?"
Ye Chenfeng simply responded without opening his eyes to look.
The most impatient person in the car was Sister Guai. She felt restless, unable to calm down as she waited, filled with anxiety and panic.
Finally, she somehow managed to open the car door.
“Auntie, don’t…” Ding Li shouted at her in a hurry.
But she seemed lost and insisted on getting out of the car. At that moment, Sun Xianger woke up and suddenly saw someone rushing towards their vehicle.
“She… a ghost… she’s coming.”
Hearing Sun Xianger's words sent a jolt through Ding Li, and he truly saw a woman with disheveled hair running towards them.
Just then, Qin Keqing got out of the car and grabbed Sister Guai, pulling her back inside.
Ye Chenfeng sensed that something was wrong but couldn’t pull away.
As Su Bei and Qin Keqing held onto Sister Guai, the figure that had been rushing towards them arrived at the car door—
In an incredibly tense moment, she suddenly lunged at the car window, pressing a terrifying face against the glass.
Sister Guai saw this face; it wasn’t just a face, but a deep, gaping pit. Rather than a face, it looked more like a pit deformed by being struck by a large rock. She was so frightened that she froze in place, then rolled her eyes and fainted.
What did Sister Guai see?
No one else witnessed that horrifying face. They focused on providing emergency aid to Sister Guai, but she remained unconscious for quite some time. Before long, her breathing became shallow.
Ye Chenfeng's exorcism was successful; some spirits left gratefully. Others lingered nearby, as if waiting for someone.
"Alas, I've done my best. If you are unwilling to leave, then I'll burn more Joss Paper for you. I just ask that you don't trouble the past souls."
Ye Chenfeng hurried over to deal with the remaining matters, anxious to see what was happening in the car.
Sister Guai was in a dire situation.
After Ye Chenfeng's calculations and negotiations with the Evil Spirit, everyone in the car, except for Ding Li, heard something that seemed rather bizarre.
Ye Chenfeng said, "Sister Guai's grandmother wants her to stay."
"Did she see her grandmother?" Qin Keqing looked around, but there was no sign of any old lady.
"If you truly want to see, then take a look. Her appearance is terrifying; her face is gone, leaving only a dreadful pit formed by collapsed features."
Just hearing Ye Chenfeng say this was enough to frighten everyone in the car into silence; no one dared to continue looking.
"Is that true?" Even after the car had driven quite a distance away, Shen Binghan still looked at Sister Guai in disbelief. She appeared weak and frail, and they were in a remote area with no hospitals or medical stations nearby. This situation with Sister Guai felt eerie.
Ye Chenfeng, however, ignored Qin Keqing. He waved his hand outside the car and offered an apologetic smile. "Auntie, I'm sorry. I will take you home and ensure you receive a proper send-off."
Ding Li understood that Ye Chenfeng was bidding farewell to Sister Guai. The poor woman could not leave Zhanglin Village even in death. Wasn't this just a reflection of the old saying? Born as a person of Zhanglin Village, even in death, one remains a ghost of Zhanglin Village.
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